I have a love/hate relationship with my Netipot. If you have never heard of one, let me introduce you to him. A Netipot is a nasal irrigation system. It is typically in the shape of a pot with a handle at one end and the spout at the other end. You add distilled or boiled water that has cooled and a salt packet to the pot and then you insert the spout into your nose and allow the salt water to flush your sinus cavities. The one that I use is Neilmed Nasaflo Porcelain Neti Pot with 50 Count Saline packets. To purchase on Amazon, click here: https://amzn.to/2UgXA2e
From Webmd.com: A more biological explanation for how the Neti pot works: Lining the inside of the nasal and sinus cavities are tiny, hair-like structures called cilia. The cilia wave back and forth to push mucus either to the back of the throat where it can be swallowed and cause illness, or to the front of the nose to be blown out. Saline solution helps to increase the speed and improve coordination of the cilia so that they may more effectively remove the allergens, germs and other irritants that cause sinus problems or ultimately make you sick.
If you do it right, it takes about 3 minutes to complete the Netipot process. But….if you do it wrong, as I often do, you can get a “water headache” which feels like one you get when water goes up your nose. If you do it right, it doesn’t hurt. If you do it wrong, it can give you a raging water headache that can last a few hours. By now, you should be understanding why my relationship with the Netipot is a love/hate one.
Many doctors swear by the use of a Netipot every morning. Since it flushes out your sinuses, it also flushes out any germs that may be hanging out in your nasal passages. Your nose is one of the primary ways that you get sick with a cold, flu or now the Coronavirus. My strategy every time I feel like I may be getting sick is to start using the Netipot a couple times during the day. My husband swears that it keeps him from getting sick. In times like this, every little bit helps in staving off illness. The Netipot is a good weapon to add to your wellbeing arsenal.
